Grading machine



May 5, 1942. J. w. JOHNSTON GRADING MACHINE v 6 Sheets-Sheet 1 Filed May v24, 1940 y 1942- J. w. JOHNSTON GRADING MACHINE 24, 1940 6 Sheets-Sheet 2 J. w. JOHNSTON 2,281,771

GRADING MACHINE Filed May 24, 1940 6 Sheets-Sheet 3 J. W. JOHNSTON GRADING MACHINE Filed May 24, 1940 May 5, 1942.

6 Sheets-Sheet 4 6 Sheets-Sheet s lzaforr Mill J. w. JOHNSTON Filed May g 19 May 5, 1942.

y 1942- J. w. JOHNSTON GRADING MACHINE Filed May 24, 1940 fi./4.

6 Sheets-Shget 6 all "a a".

Patented May 5, 1942 2,281,77 1 GRADING MACHINE James W. Johnston,

Manchester, N. H., assignor to North American H olding Corporation, Syracuse, N. Y., a corpora tion of New York Application May 24, 1940, Serial No. 336,991 15 Claims. tCl. 69-11) the line 5-5 in Fig. 1, and illustrating one face This invention relates to an improvement in grading machines for shoe soles, heel lifts, counters, taps, or other blanks of stock, and more particularly to that type of grading machine shown in the patent to Nichols No. 1,130,321, dated March 2, 1915. Although of more general application, the invention will be herein illustrated as applied to a machine of that type specifically described in the patents to Cogswell No. 1,726,610, dated September 3, 1929, and to Johnston No. 1,835,057, dated December 8, 1931. In the following specification so much of that machine will be described as is necessary for an understanding of the present invention, and reference is made to said Cogswell and Johnston patents for a more complete description. For convenience the same reference numerals so far as applicable will be applied to those elements of the machine here illustrated which were applied to corresponding elements of the machine illustrated in said Cogswell and Johnston patents.

The objects of this invention include the provision of a trip arm adapted to be actuated by the leading edge of a blank with laterally spaced fingers at opposite sides of the longitudinal center line of the machine whereby each blank, even though improperly positioned, will engage at least one arm; the provision of latching means for the wedge bar of the grading mechanism which comprises a pair of pivotally mounted latches actuated during the advance of the blanks to positively engage and lock the slide bar so that the shifting of the wedge bar is restricted to a distance of less than one-half an iron, such latches being positively held out of contact with the wedge bar during its normal shifting in response to the thickness or thinness of the blank during the grading operation; the provision in the grading mechanism of a removable deflector associated with the skiving blade; the mounting of the delivery rollers in a housing whereby they are removable as a unit; and the provision of separable driving means for such delivery rollers.

These and other objects of the invention will appear from an examination of the following description and of the drawings which form a part thereof, and in which Fig. l is a plan view of a embodying this invention;

. Fig. 2 is a side elevation of such machine;

Fig. 3 is a longitudinal section thereof;

Fig. 4 is a perspective view of the trip bar by which the feeding of the blanks is controlled;

Fig. 5 is a cross-sectional view taken along grading machine tions the latches for the finger and actuate the trip .q be repeated in order of the grading mechanism;

Fig. 6 is a perspective view of the feeding control devices;

Figs. 7 and 8 illustrate in side and end elevawedge bar;

Fig. 9 is an end view of the machine taken from the right of Fig. 1, and illustrating the other face of the grading mechanism;

Figs. 10, l1, l2 and 13 illustrate elements of the driving means for the delivery rollers;

Fig. 14 is an end elevation view of the housing for the delivery rollers;

Fig. 15 is a sectional view 15-15 inFig. 14; and

Fig. 16 is a sectional line Iii-46 in Fig. 15.

The present invention is illustrated in a grading machine of the same general construction as those shown and described in the Cogswell Patent No. 1,726,610 and the Johnston Patent No. 1,835,057 mentioned above, and said patents are incorporated herein by reference for a fuller description of certain details which need not here to understand the present of certain elements taken along the line view taken along the invention.

Referring to the drawings, the main shaft l which extends transversely across the machine carries at one end a pulley 2 by which the shaft is continuously driven in the direction indicated by an arrow 3 (Fig. 2) and at the other end a pinion 4 which meshes with a gear 5 on a stud shaft 6. Fixed upon the stud shaft 6 is a sprocket wheel I connected by a chain 8 with a sprocket wheel 9 which is loosely mounted on a shaft I0 and forms one member of a clutch which is of the well known spring-pressed type. Splined upon the shaft 10 and within the sprocket wheel 8 is a slidable clutch sleeve II which is normally held at rest and out of clutching engagement with the sprocket wheel 9 by a shipper l2. The shipper I2 is in the form of an arm pivotally mounted intermediate its ends upon a stud l3 and normally held by a spring M in engagement with a pin 15 carried by the sleeve H.

A set screw 16 adjustably fixes such position of the shipper. Through means to be described below, the shipper I2 is disengaged from the pin [5 and a single rotation of the shaft l0 permitted in a clockwise direction (Fig. 2).

The blanks S are fed one at a time from a hopper by a feed slide (not shown) actuated through a link 11 by a crank arm l8 fixed to the inner end of the shaft [0 between the side walls of the frame. At the outlet of the hopper is mounted a U-shaped grate 20 pivotally supported at its ends at 2i and raised by the advanced end of the blank being fed. This feeding mechanism is more fully described in the Cogswell patent above mentioned.

The blank then enters between the initial pair of detector rolls 25 and 25. The upper roll 25 is continuously driven from the shaft 6 by a gear 2'! compounded with the gear 5 and a gear 28 on the shaft of the roll. The lower roll 26 is driven from the upper roll 25 through intermeshing gears and yieldably urged into contact therewith as by the construction fully shown and described in the above-mentioned Johnston patent.

The detector rolls 25 and 26 advance the blank into position between the usual spring actuated hold-down shoe M. by a shaft 32 actuated from the in the direction indicated by the Fig. 3, and its main shaft I, arrow 33 on at each side of the machine. It is the usual practice to construct the hopper H of machines of this type with movable side walls capable of manual adengage at least one of and thus trip the bar 31.

Extending transversely of the machine is a whereupon the lever bar 40 drops, lowering the and causing theshipper sleeve ll so that the clutch is set and the shaft I is rotated. The

feeding of another blank S tatedin a clockwise. direction from the hopper thereupon is initiated. As the shaft I0 is 1 0-- the pin [5 trips one end of an arm 49 pivotally. mounted upon 3t] and a feedchain v The feed chain 3| is continuously driven the frame and yieldably held by a spring 53 with that end in the path of travel of the pin and the other revolution.

In order to start the machine when at rest a starter 5! is provided by which the lever bar 40 can be raised manually. Such (see is, the skiving or marking wheel I75) as that disclosed in the said C'ogswell Patent No. 1,726,610.

The passage of a blank between the detecting rolls 25 and 26 causes the lower roll 26 to move ent No. 1,726,610. Mounted upon the rock shaft I39 are'opposed ratchet segments I63 and 64. A pawl IE5 normally meshes with the segment I63 while a pawl I66 is When the rear edge of under the gate 20 the latter falls and the pawl I resumes its normal position. The rock shaft H39 is now locked against movement in either normal inoperative position. 70

The marking wheel (Fig. 5) is actuated wheel is set in unison with the wedge bar. Means about to be described are provided by which the wedge bar I55 and marking wheel I are locked in the final adjusted position until the blank, whose measurements determine the setting of the wedge bar and the marking wheel, has passed the grading devices.

A plate 200 carried at one end by the arm I81 (Fig. 1) is slidably supported upon the frame by a stud I (Fig. 5) passed through a slot 202. At the lower edge of the plate 200 is provided a rack comprising teeth 203 separated by spaces 204 of the same width as the teeth. The dimensions of the rack are such that the distance from the center of one tooth to the center of the adjacent tooth is equal to th displacement of the wedge bar I55 due to a predetermined variation measured in irons in the thickness of the blank. For example, such distance may correspond to a one-iron displacement of the lower detecting roll 26. Preferably the distance will correspond to a predetermined multiple of one iron; thus, if the amplification be that of one to six, the distance between centers would be one-eighth of an inch and the width of each tooth and of the spaces between the teeth would be one-sixteenth of an inch.

Pivotally mounted upon the frame are a pair of latches 205 carried by a stud 205 upon a bracket 2%)! and yieldably held by springs 208 with the upper ends in contact with the plate 200 at the row of teeth 203. The upper end of each latch is formed to provide a tongue 2I0. Each tongue is of the same width as the teeth 203,

for example one-sixteenth of an inch, and the tongues are in contact as shown in Fig. '1. The bracket 261 is Z-shaped in form and has a slot 2 II through which the upper ends of the latches project and by which the latches are guided in movement. The lower ends of the latches are tapered and extend in front of the bar 44 which terminates in an enlarged nose or cam 2I2.

When, during the advance of the blank below the shoe the bar 44 is raised by the mechanism previously described, the cam 2I2 engages the lower ends of the latches 205 and retracts the upper ends thereof from contact with the plate 200. When, however, the blank permits the trip bar 31 to drop and the bar 44 is lowered, the cam 2I2 moves out of contact with the latches 205 and the springs 208 advance the upper ends of the latches into contact with the rack on the bar 280. In the great majority of cases the tip of one of the latches will enter one of the spaces 204 between the teeth 203 in the rack so that the plate 208 is held against movement and the wedge bar I accordingly locked in place. Even if the plate 200 be so positioned that neither latch enters a space 204, the possible movement of the plate is limited; thus in the present installation such movement is necessarily less than one-half an iron.

As the blank S is advanced toward the grading mechanism the leading edge actuates trip bars 89 which cause the wheel I15 that has been set by the rock shaft I39 to descend and place a mark upon the portion of the blank now resting upon the anvil 90. Such operation is performed by mechanism not here shown since it forms no part of the present invention, but fully disclosed and described in the said Cogswell Patent No. 1,726,610.

The leading edge of the blank now enters the bite of the feed rollers 6| and 62 of the skiving device 60. The feed rollers are positively driven of that roller. the rollers are BI is raised until the wedges I51 on from the main shaft I, the upper roller GI through a gear 63 on that shaft, and a gear 64 on the shaft of the roller, and the lower roller 52 through the gearl and a gear 65 on the shaft The journal boxes 66 and 61 of slidably mounted in ways so that upon the insertion of the blank the upper roller the journal boxes 61 come in contact with the wedges I56 on the wedge bar I55, while the lower roller 82 is forced downwardly against the supporting pressure of springs I16.

The blank is fed by the rollers 5| and 62 against the cutting edge of a knife 1| fixed upon the machine by which the surplus or waste stock is removed. The distance that the upper roller is raised, which is controlled by the wedge bar I55 in response to the action of the detector rolls, determines the final thickness of the blank while the distance that the lower roller is depressed determines the thickness of the layer to be removed. Preferably the blanks are fed with the flesh side down so that the portion removed is taken from that side.

While the surplus portion or skiving is directed downwardly by the knife blade II, the skived blank is directed by the blade and a deflector 12 into the bite of constantly driven delivery rollers and 8|. The deflector 12 comprises a sub stantially horizontal plate 13 above and spaced from the blade. The plate is carried between a pair of legs 14 which rest upon the frame of the machine at opposite sides of the blade 1 i. Above the plate 13 project lugs 15 which carry set screws 16. By tightening the set screws against the frame the deflector 12 is thus held firmly in position. When it is desired, the deflector may easily be removed to afford free access to the skiving blade.

The delivery rollers 80 and 8! are enclosed within a housing 82 and are removable as a unit away from the end of the machine. The housing 82 is supported upon a U-shaped bracket 83 fixed to the end of the machine frame and is pivotally secured to the bracket by a spindle iii projecting downwardly from one end of the locusing and passing through openings in the end plates of the bracket. The housing is removabiy secured in position by a plate 85 fixed. to the other end of the housing and having an opening 86 therein which, when the unit is in position, receives one end of a latch bar 81 carried by the machine frame and slidable transversely thereof. The free end of the unit rests upon a roller 88 carried by a bracket fixed to the machine frame, which roller is engaged by the edge of the plate 85 as shown in Fig. 2.

The housing 82 comprises a u -shaped base and a top plate 95 which surround the rollers (see Fig. 14). Each end wall 91 is cut away to provide a pocket 98 which receives the journal boxes 99 and I00 that carry the shafts I0! and I02 of the rollers 80 and BI, respectively (see Fig. 15). The journal boxes I00 are stationary and rest in the bottom of the pockets. The journal boxes 09 are reciprocably in the pockets and are guided by shoulders I03 on the journal boxes which engage shoulders I04 on the walls of the pockets. The journal boxes 99 are yieldably held in contact with the journal boxes Hi9 by the following mechanism: Secured to the bottom of each box 99 is a crossbar I05 against the ends of which abut the bottoms of spiral springs I95 which extend at each side of the box. The tops of the springs are connected by a crossbar It'll.

sprocket M5 on the shaft of the lower roller 62 i2!) carried by the bracket 83 in by a collar I21 and secured there- A shaft I22 is reciprocal in The latch bar 87 carries at its outer end an arm I25 having an opening therein which receives the shaft I 22.

while the retraction of the latch bar to release the housing will also retract the shaft n22 so that the fins :23 are withdrawn from the notches l 28 and the housing may be swung on thespindle 8 away from the machine frame.

The operation with the fingers 36 of the pivotally mounted strip bar 37 thereby swinging such bar upwardly. This movement of the bar 31 lifts the lever bar 40 and the latter raises the bar M.

2l2 on the bar engages the lowerends oi the I latches 235 and moves their outer ends out of contact with the teeth 263 of the plate 260 of the grading mechanism and permits the setting of such mechanism in response to the movement of the detector roll 26. When the blank has passed out of shipper and the feed of the next blank. The cam 252 at the same time releases the latches 295 which thereupon lock the grading mechanism as set by the detecting mechanism. The blank having received its grade mark enters the bite of the feed rollers 55 and 62 of the skiving device "69 by mg mechanism,

While the blank continues below the deflector 7.2 to the delivery rollers '80 and 8! by which it is removed from the machine.

Unless otherwise required by the context the term "fgrading mechanism is used herein generically as explained in said Cogswell Patent No. 1,726,610.

I claim: 1. Agrading machine ing mechanism, .grading 2. A grading machine which comprises detectspaces and bemg so associated that the latches engage only one tooth and the space adjacent thereto.

progress to raise the trailingedgeof such blank.

4. A grading machine of the kind having detecting mechanism, grading mechanism responthe detecting mechanism to the grading mecha nism whereby the governing means are actuated to feed a succeeding blank and the grading mechanism is simultaneously locked, which blankcontrolled means include a trip bar having laterally spaced fingers at opposite sides of the longitudinal center line, one at least of which fingers is engaged by the leading edge of the blank in progress to raise said trip bar and is released by the trailing edge of such blank, a pivotally mounted bar actuated by the trip bar in response to the travel of a blank, and a pair of latches by which said grading mechanism is locked, said latches being held by said pivotally mounted bar in the inoperative position until said trip bar is released by the trailing edge of the blank whereupon one only of said latches acts to lock said grading mechanism.

5. A grading machine of the kind having dctecting mechanism, grading mechanism responsive to the detecting mechanism, and means governing the admission of blanks to the detecting mechanism, characterized in the provision of means controlled by a blank in progress from the detecting mechanism to the grading mechanism whereby the governing means are actuated to feed a succeeding blank and the grading mechanism is simultaneously locked, which blankcontrolled means include a trip bar having laterally spaced fingers at opposite sides of the longitudinal center line, one at least of which fingers is engaged by the leading edge of the blank in progress to raise said trip bar and is released by the trailing edge of such blank, a pivotally mounted bar actuated by the trip bar in response to the travel of the blank, and a pair of latches pivotally mounted intermediate their ends and by which said grading mechanism is locked, said latches being engaged by one end of said pivotally mounted bar and swung into inoperative position, in which position the latches are held until said trip bar is released by the trailing edge of the blank, whereupon the latches are released and one only acts to lock said grading mechanism.

6. A grading machine of the kind having detecting mechanism, grading mechanism responsive to the detecting mechanism, and means governing the admission of blanks to the detecting mechanism, characterized in the provision of means controlled by a blank in progress from the detecting mechanism to the grading mechanism whereby the governing means are actuated to feed 'a succeeding blank and the grading mechanism is simultaneously locked, which blank-controlled means include a trip bar having laterally spaced fingers at opposite sides of the longitudinal center line, one at least of which fingers is engaged by the leading edge of the blank in progress to raise said trip bar and is release by the trailing edge of such blank, a bar pivotally mounted adjacent one end and provided with a cam at the other end thereof, said bar being actuated by said trip bar in response to the travel of the blank, and a pair of latches pivotally mounted intermediate their ends and by one end of which said grading mechanism is locked, the other ends of which latches are engaged by the cam of said pivotally mounted bar to swing the other ends thereof into inoperative position, in which position the latches are held until said trip bar is released by the trailing edge of the blank, whereupon the cam is moved out of engagement with the latches to release said latches and permit one only of said latches to lock said grading mechanism.

7. In a machine of the class described wherein blanks are fed through the machine and operated upon during their progress by power driven mechanism, which machine includes delivery rollers by which the blanks are discharged, a housing in which rollers are mounted, said housing being stationed at the end of the machine when the rollers are in operating position and being removable therefrom when desired, and means carried by the machine by which the rollers are operated when the housing is so stationed, said means being separable from the rollers prior to the removal of the housing from the machine.

8. In a machine of the class described wherein blanks are fed through the machine and operated upon during their progress by power driven mechanism, which machine includes delivery rollers by which the blanks are discharged, a housing in which rollers are mounted, said housing being stationed at the end of the machine when the rollers are in operating position and being removable therefrom when desired, and means for driving said rollers from the source of power of said mechanism.

9. In a machine of the class described wherein blanks are fed through the machine and operated upon during their progress by power driven mechanism, which machine includes delivery rollers by which the blanks are discharged, a housing in which rollers are mounted, said housing being stationed at the end of the machine when the rollers are in operating position and being removable therefrom when desired, and means for driving said rollers from the source of power of said mechanism, said means being separable whereby the rollers are disconnected from the source when the housing is free for removal from the frame of the machine.

10. In a machine of the class described wherein blanks are fed through the machine and operated upon during their progress by power driven mechanism, which machine includes delivery rollers by which the blanks are discharged, a housing in which rollers are mounted, said housing being stationed at the end of the machine when the rollers are in operating position and being removable therefrom when desired, means actuated by the source of power of said mechanism for driving said rollers, said means including separable connecting elements, and a latch for removably securing the housing to the frame of the machine with the rollers in operating position.

11. In a machine of the class described wherein blanks are fed through the machine and operated upon during their progress by power driven mechanism, which machine includes delivery rollers by which the blanks are discharged, a housing in which rollers are mounted, said housing being stationed at the end of the machine when the rollers are in operating position and being removable therefrom when desired, means actuated by the source of power of said mechanism for driving said rollers, said means including separable connecting elements, and a latch for removably securing the housing to the frame of the machine with the rollers in operating position, said latch including an element associated with said separable connecting elements by which said elements are united when the latch secures the housing to the frame and are separated when the latch releases said housing from the frame.

12. In a machine'ofthe class described wherein blanks are fedthrough the machine and operated upon. duringtheir progress by'power driven mechanism, which machine includes delivery rollers by which the blanks are discharged, a housing, in which rollers are mounted, said housing being stationed at the end of the machine when the rollers are in operatingposition and being removable therefrom when desired, means actuated by the source of said mechanism for driving said rollers, said means including separable connecting elements, and alatchbar carried by the frame of the machine for reciprocation transversely thereof and adaptedto engage said housing and secure it with the rollers in operating position.

13. In a machine of the class described wherein blanks are fed throughthe'machine and operated upon during their progress by power driven mechanism, which machine includes delivery rollers by which the blanks are discharged, a housing in which rollers are mounted, said housing being stationed at the end ofthe machine when the rollers are in operating position and being removable therefrom when desired, means actuated by the source of said mechanism for driving said rollers, said means including separable connecting elements, and a latch bar carried by the frame of the machine for reciprocation transversely thereof and adapted to engage said housing and secure it with the rollers in operating position, and an arm carried by said latch bar and by which the connecting elements are joined when the housing is engaged by the latch bar and separated when the housing is released by said latch bar.

14. In amachine of the class described wherein blanks are fed through the machine and operated upon during their progress by power driven mechanism; which machine includes delivery rollers by which the blanks are discharged, a

housing in which the rollers are mounted, said housing being pivotally mounted upon the frame of the machine and movable into and out of operating position, and means actuated by the source of power of said mechanism for driving said rollers when in operating position, said means including a connecting element carried by the frame and movable into engagement with a shaft of one of said rollers.

15. In a machine of the class described wherein blanks are fed through the machine and operated upon during their progress by power driven mechanism, which machine includes delivery rollers by which the blanks are discharged, a

housing in which the rollers are mounted, said housing being pivotally mounted upon the frame of the machine and movable into and out of operating position, a latch bar carried by the frame of the machine and movable transversely thereof for securing the housing in operating position, means actuated by the source of power of said mechanism for driving said rollers when inoperating position, said means including a connecting element carried by said frame and 1 movable into engagement with a shaft of one of said rollers, and an arm carried by said latch bar by which said element is moved into such engagement when the latch bar is moved to secure the housing in operating position.

JAMES W. JOHNSTON. 

